Jan Schmuckal

A native of St. Charles, Illinois, Jan Schmuckal was the kind of kid always doing some sort of art project, thanks to her very indulgent parents! She graduated from the University of Illinois in 1986 with a degree in Industrial Design, and spent the following years as a designer in the Point-of-Purchase industry. After many years as a designer, she had an overwhelming desire to start painting again, which she had not done since high school. She started out in a little makeshift studio in the corner of her apartment bedroom. At that time, Jan made a conscious decision to go in an impressionistic direction as an artist rather than as a realist because it provided a break from the realistic renderings that she did every day as a designer. To further hone her technique she pursued an ad-hoc education, taking workshops and classes from both nationally accredited and local artists. She entered regional shows, then national shows, placed her work in galleries, gave painting workshops, (quit her design job!) opened 3 successive art studios, taught art classes... and in 2005, Jan opened an art gallery in 112-year-old house in Geneva, Illinois.

What Jan says about her Art…

“The changing light of day and the moods it evokes are the foundation of all my oil paintings. Each piece starts with a powerful, simple composition, which then evolves into a theme in which strong light and shadow and deep color are within the primary subject. Strength, mood and simplicity are my primary intentions. All my paintings are done Alla Prima, also known as direct painting, which means; A style of painting where, instead of building colors up with layers, the painting is done in one session while the paint is still wet. From the Italian word which literally means at once. I feel that this style of painting helps my intentions to be succinct within each painting.”

I believe that Art begins with intent. After I have established my intent, then there are levels of insight about a subject that I add to the intent. After I establish my intent and some level of insight, only then can my learned painting skills come into play, and those are the tools that I use to define my insight and intent. Painting is very much like writing poetry. A poet can write a barroom limerick, a haiku, or an epic poem... it all depends on the intertwining of intent, insight, and skill level. To quote Leonardo Da Vinci,‘Where the spirit does not work with the hand, there is no art”.